Greetings again from the darkness. Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Ty Burrell and Luke Wilson ... prepare yourself for 90 minutes of side-splitting laughter! OK, well you can prepare all you want, but you should know that while there are some funny moments, this is one of the bleakest films of the year. Bleak as in achingly painful to watch at times due to the emotional pain most every character experiences.
Hopefully no one stopped reading after "side-splitting laughter" because here is a sampling of thematic elements covered in the film: attempted suicide, suicide of a parent, adultery, sexual abuse of a minor, rampant lying, depression, horrific parenting, drug use, animal cruelty.
If Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig of SNL fame don't spring to mind when considering those elements, please keep an open mind. Both are extremely good (and believable) in their roles as twins estranged for a decade, forced back together after a near tragedy. See, after a miserable childhood, their time apart has prevented both from establishing a strong personal relationship with anyone else. Hader plays a self-professed "gay cliché", while Wiig is pretending to have the perfect suburban life with her gung-ho, always "up", good guy husband (Luke Wilson).
The film's best humor is produced in small moments thanks to the connection between Wiig and Hader. It's definitely not in the almost shameful attempts at crowd-pleasing offered in the SNL-ish scenes of lip-synching to Starship, and over-indulging on Nitrous Oxide at the dental office.
Real emotional turmoil exists in the scenes between Hader and Ty Burrell, and the unnecessary and inexplicable reunion between Hader, Wiig and their mother (Joanna Gleason). Burrell, known for his outstanding "Modern Family" role, is intriguing as a dramatic actor. Looking forward to more of this from him.
The script, co-written by director Craig Johnson and Mark Heyman, really does capture some poignant and dramatic moments, and certainly benefits from the extremely talented cast. Just don't expect that side-splitting laughter ... unless you are susceptible to lip-synching and/or nitrous oxide.
